Cable-operated car for operating inclines



H. w. SESSOMSL CABLE OPERATED CAR FOR OPERATING INCLINES.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 27,1921.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

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attouwqt H. W. SESSOMS.

CABLE OPERATED CAR FOR OPERATING INCLINES.

' APPLICATLON FILED JULY 27,1921.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

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Grammy H. W. SESSOMS.

CABLE OPERATED CAR FOR OPERATING INCLINES.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 27.1921.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

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UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HUGH W. SESSOMS, OF ARLINGTON, WASHINGTON, ASSIGNOR OF ONEFHALF TO PACIFIC CAR AND FOUNDRY COIVLPANY, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, A. COR- PORATION OF WASHINGTON.

CABLE-OPERATED CAR FOR OPERATING INCLINES.

Application filed July 27,

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HUGH WV. SnssoMs, a citizen of the United States of America, and resident of the city of Arlington, Snohomish County, State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful-Improvements in Cable-Operated Cars for Operating Inclines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a car and the means associated therewith by which said car may be used for the operation of in-- cline railroads and the hauling of loads thereover.

The object of my invention is to provide a car for operationby a cable and'by means of which trackways of unusual inclination, such as may not be successfully operated by ordinary traction, may be operated so as to haul loads up and down the same.

My invention is particularly an improvement upon the device shown in my previous Patent, No. 1,051,278, issued to me January 21, 1913. The chief use for which'the car has been designed is for the bringing of logs loaded-upon ordinary cars down from mountains and elevations where'it is not feasible to cheaply construct railroads to be operated by ordinary traction. It is evident, however, that my invention may be employed for operating inclines, whatever the charac ter of the load being handled.

The features of my invention which I believe to be new and upon which I desire to secure a patent will be hereinafter described and then particularly defined by the claims.

The accompanying drawings show my invention in the form of construction which I now -employ.

Figure 1 is a top or plan view of a car having invention mounted thereon.

Figure 2 is a side elevation of the same car and Figure 3 a cross section taken upon the plane of the pivotal connection between the sheave carrying frame and the car body.

Figure 4 is a profile and Figure 5 a plan showing conditions under which my inventionhas been designed for operation.

Figure 6 shows the type of cable supporting and retaining means adopted for the live side of the cable where the track passes over a dip, that is, where the incline of the track is concaved upwardly.

Figure 7 shows the cable supporting means for the same side of the cable where Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 11, 1922.

1921. Serial No. 487,874.

the grade-is a straight or uniform grade or where the grade is convex upwardly.

Figures 8 and 9 show two positions of the sort of cable guiding pulley which is employed upon curves for the live side of the cable and Figures 10 and 11 show two corresponding positions for the cable retaining means which are employed for the dead or non-moving side of the cable.

The car employed for operating incline railroads in accordance with my system is shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3. The construction of the car as a car, may be of any standard or acceptable type. Upon one end of tie car is mounted a sheave frame in which are journaled a sheave or sheaves,

over which passes the cable by which the car is operated and controlled.

The sheave frame as illustrated has a top and a bottom plate 1, each of which may be of substantially the same construction. As illustrated this has three sheaves 10, 11, and 12, journaled therein. This frame and the sheaves are connected with the car by a pivot pin or axis 1.3 which fits within a socket 14 carried by the car body. This pivot pin is preferably made so that it partakes, at least slightly, of the nature of a ball and socket joint. At the same time the rocking movement of the frame upon the car is limited by reason of side bearings 15 which are placed, not only at the sides of the car, but towards the front and rear of the frame. The sheaves over which the cable pass thus occupy a horizontal plane and the sheaves are of such a size or so spaced apart that the outer edges of the side sheaves 10 and 11 extend substantially to oreven project well beyond the side margins of the car. Over these pass the hauling cable 2.

One end of this cable is anchored, as shown at 20. at one side of the track at the top of the incline. The cable thence passes about the sheaves on the car and back along the other side of the track to a drum, as 3, which is turned by an engine or motor so as to pay out and take up the cable as desired. I have found it a practical necessity to provide the anchoring end of the cable with a swivel joint as shown at 21 so that the cable may freely twist as cables will when put under strain.

I do not deem it practical to make the sheave frame 1 and the sheaves mounted therein of such size as to lead the cable such a distance away from the car as to insure positive clearance between the cars which carry the logs and the cable supports which are placed along the track. I therefore provide cable guiding means consisting of two beams l and 5 each of which projects beyond the side edge of the car and has journaled therein guide pulleys or sheaves over which the cable passes. These guide pulleys 6 may be of small diameter. I prefor that the plates 50 between which the pulleys are journaled, extend outward and connect with each other so that the sheave is entirely enclosed thereby. It is thus impossible for the cable to get out of place and move from the guide pulleys.

Where the inclination of the track form, no particular means is needed alongside of the track to prevent lifting of the cable. To accommodate the dead side of I tie cable, that is, the end which is anchored and which has no traveling movement along the track, any suitable type of support will answer. lVhere the track is straight a simple arm will answer for this purpose. 'lVhere, however, the track has lateral curvature it is necessar to provide something to hold the cableand prevent it from pulling in so as t form a chord of an arc.

Figures 10 and 11 show a type of construction which is employed in such positions. This consists of a device which has a central pivoting section 7 and two arms 70 and 71 which arms are at right angles to the pivot section 7 These arms are of such length and so located relative to the track that the longer of the two beams, that is, the beam 5, will contact with each of these as it passes. In the position of this is unidevice shown in Figure 10, the cable holding arm lies horizontal. and the trip arm 71 vertical.

These arms are so positioned with reference to the track and the direction of movement of the car that the beam 5 will engage the trip arm 71 so as to throw it down and raise the holding arm 70 when the car is moving in the direction in which the cable is being paid out, that is, down the incline. It will then strike the arm 71 and throwthe holding arm 70 up. The cable will then be laid behind this arm and will thereby be held against pulling outward as the car passes about the curve. The outer end of the holding arm 70 is preferably given a slight hook, as shown at 7 2, thus preventing the possibility of the cable sliding up and off of the arm.

On the live side of the cable a device is employed which is similar in its essential principles to that which is described, ex cept that a pulley is employed instead of the arm. Such a device is shown in Figures 8 and 9. The operation of this device is the same as that just described except that a rolling contact member, namely the pulley sections 8 and 80, are substituted for the integral arm 70. In some cases these sections 8 and would be made integral. In other cases, however, particularly where this device is located in a dip in the track, I prefer to make these in separate or independent sections so that as the cable has a tendency to lift, the uppermost end of the section 8 can rise somewhat upon its pivot shaft.

here the track is straight and passes over a dip in the track, the device as shown in Figure 6 is employed for holding the live side of the cable. This has two pulleys 81 located one above and one below the cable with a. gap in their holding frame for the entrance of the cable. 'W'here the-grade is uniform a simple pulley, as 82, shown in Figure 7 may be employed. The supporting frame for this pulley preferably should have inclined upwardly and outwardly extending horns or fingers 83 so as to widen the space within which the cable will be guided upon the supporting pulleys. The. device described may be employed for operating a number of cars up or down an incline which is too steep to be operated by. ordinary traction. I have found. by experience that thisv operates very successfully over very heavy grades. It is of simple construction which can be put in and operated without requiring the services of experts and is also reliable and safe in its operation.

lVhat I claim as my invention is: p

.1. A cable actuated haulage car for inclines,'comprising a car, a sheave frame having downwardly extendingarm, a receiving socket for said arm carried by the car, cable sheaves carried by said frame in a common plane, and means for haulage connection with the sheave frame.

2. A cable actuated haulage car for inclines, comprising a car, a sheave frame having a downwardly extending arm, a receiving socket for said arm carried by the car, cable sheaves carried by said frame in a common plane, means for haulage connection with the sheave frame, and outboard cable guides carried by the car at each side forwardly of said sheaves.

3.'A cable actuated haulage car for inclines, comprising a car, a sheave frame having a downwardly extending arm, a receiving socket for said arm carried by the car, cable sheaves carried by said framein a common plane, means for haulage connection with the sheave frame, and bearing plates between the sheave frame and the car located toward the front and rear edges thereof.

4. A cable actuated haulage car for operating inclines comprising, a car, a sheave frame and three sheaves journaled in said frame, one towards the rear and the other two at the sides of the car, a pivot arm connecting said sheave frame with the car rearwardly of the line connecting the centers of the side sheaves, and means for making a haulage connection with the rear of said frame.

5. A car operating system for inclines comprising a car having cable sheaves thereon, a cable anchored at one side of the track at the upperend of the incline, a swivel incorporated in the said cable anchorage, cable receiving supports distributed along each side of the track of the incline, a drum at the top of the incline and a cable having one end secured to wind upon said drum and extending thence about the sheaves upon the car and back to the anchorage and adapted to be positioned upon and removed from said supports at the sides of the track as the car travels over the track.

6. A car operating system for inclines comprising a car having cable sheaves thereon, a cable anchored at one side of the track at the upper end of the incline, a swivel incorporated in the said cable anchorage, ca-

.ble receiving supports distributed along each side of the track of the incline, a drum at the top of the incline and a cable having one end secured to wind upon said drum and extending thence about the sheaves upon the car and back to the anchorage and adapted to be positioned upon and removed from said supports at the sides of the track as the car travels over the track, and a haulage connection with the sheave frame.

7. A means for operating inclined rai1- ways comprising a car, a cable sheave mounted in horizontal position at one end of the car, cross beams located towards the other end of the car, cable guides carried by said cross beams outwardly of the sides of the car, a draft connection with the cable sheave mount, a cable secured at the top of the incline and leading through said cable guides at one side of the car, and a drum at the top of the incline to which the other end of the cable is secured.

8. A means for operating inclined railways comprising a car, cable sheaves horizontally placed on the car, a draft connection from the sheave frames, cable guides located outwardly of the sides of the car, a cable passing through the guide at one side of the car, over said sheave and through the guide at the other side of the car, cable supports at each side of the track each having two arms at right angles to each other and a pivotal support at right angles to both arms, said arms being positioned to be engaged by the outboard cable guides of the car to be thereby rocked into operative and inoperative positions.

9. A device for operating inclined railways comprising a haulage car, cable sheaves mounted horizontally upon said car, cable guides carried by said car outwardly of its sides, cable supports distributed at each side of the track in'position corresponding with said cable guides of the car, a cable anchored at one side of the track at the top of the incline and passing over said cable guides and sheaves of the car and a drum at the top of the incline to which the other end of said cable is secured.

10. A device for operating railway inclines comprising a car, a plurality of cable sheaves and a common frame therefor mounted in horizontal position upon the car, a pivotal connection of said sheave frame with the car, a draft connection with said sheave frame, a cable having one end anchored at one side of the track at the top of the incline and passing about said sheaves on the car, and a drum at the top of the incline and at the other side of the track to which the other end of the cable is secured, and cable supporting sheaves distributed along that side of the track 00-' cupied by the cable which is connected with the drum.

11. A car for operating inclined railways havin cable sheaves mounted in a horizontal plane towards one end thereof, a draft connection from the sheaves to the load, and cable guiding sheaves carried by the car towards its other end and outwardly of the sides of the car.

12. A car for operating railway inclines having a sheave frame connected by a vertical pivot arm with the car, a sheave in said frame, means for a draft connection with the sheave frame, and cable guides carried by the car outwardly of its sides.

13. A cable actuated hauling car for operating inclined trackways comprising a car, a sheave frame having cable sheaves journaled therein, a draft connection between car and sheave frame, means for draft connection of the load to the sheave frame and supplemental guides for an operating cable extending outwardly from the sides of the car.

Signed at Arlington, Snohomish County, 'lVashington, this 18th day of July, 1921.

HUGH W. SESSOMS. 

